2V0-51.23 VMware Horizon 8.x Professional Questions and Answers

JPEG/PNG - Still images.

H.264: Rapidly moving content and motion graphics such as streaming video, video editing, and gaming.

HEVC: Rapidly moving content on a low bandwidth resource.

Proprietary Blast codec: Low-motion graphics, high-quality graphics such as Photoshop, and AutoCAD.

To enable an instant-clone pool to use NVIDIA GRID vGPU, the administrator needs to do the following:

• Install NVIDIA GRID vGPU in the physical ESXi hosts and select Shared Direct in the Host Graphics Settings12.
• Prepare a golden image with NVIDIA GRID vGPU configured, including selecting the vGPU profile to use12.
• Take a snapshot of the golden image12.
• In Horizon Console, when creating an instant-clone pool, select Manage Using vSphere Client in the 3D Render field. Instant-clones inherit the settings configured in the vSphere Client for the golden image12.

Therefore, the possible reasons for the issue are:

• The administrator has selected Shared instead of Shared Direct when editing the Host Graphics Settings for the ESXi host in the vCenter Server. This option is for vSGA, not vGPU3.
• The golden image and snapshot that the administrator selected has not been configured for NVIDIA GRID vGPU. The administrator needs to verify that the correct vGPU profile is selected and that the NVIDIA drivers are installed in the golden image4.

The other options are not valid because:

• Horizon 8 does have an explicit 3D renderer option for instant clone, but it is Manage Using vSphere Client, not NVIDIA GRID vGPU12.
• Instant-clone pools do support NVIDIA GRID vGPU as long as the ESXi hosts and the golden image are properly configured12.

References := 1: VMware Horizon 8 Documentation: Enable NVIDIA GRID vGPU for Instant-Clone Pools 2: VMware Horizon 8 Documentation: Configuring 3D Rendering for Automated Instant Clone Farms 3: VMware Horizon 8 Documentation: Types of Graphics Acceleration 4: VMware Horizon 8 Documentation: Prepare a Virtual Machine to Use Accelerated 3D Graphics

Single sign-on (SSO) is a feature that allows users to log in to Horizon Client once and launch remote desktops and applications without being prompted for credentials again. SSO is enabled by default and can be configured in the Global Settings of Horizon Administrator. One of the settings is SSO Timeout, which determines how long the user’s credentials are cached before they expire. If the SSO Timeout is too short, users might be frequently asked for credentials when opening additional apps. To resolve this issue, the administrator can increase the SSO Timeout value or set it to -1, which means that no SSO timeout limit is set. References: Global Settings for Client Sessions in Horizon Console and [VMware Horizon 8.x Professional Course]

https://docs.vmware.com/en/VMware-Horizon-7/7.13/horizon-console-administration/GUID-E2A7CA32-193D-43D9-B08E-DD20CAE9CA28.html

VMware Dynamic Environment Manager Application Profiler is a standalone application that simplifies the creation of Flex configuration files and predefined settings for use with VMware Dynamic Environment Manager. Application Profiler analyzes where an application stores its file and registry configuration. The analysis results in an optimized Flex configuration file, which you can edit in the Application Profiler or use directly in the VMware Dynamic Environment Manager environment. With Application Profiler, you can also create application-specific predefined settings, with which you can set the initial configuration state of applications. Save the Flex configuration file with predefined settings to export the current application configuration state1.

Therefore, the two capabilities that are supported by VMware Dynamic Environment Manager Application Profiler are:

• It allows creation of application-specific predefined settings. This means that you can configure the default settings for an application that will be applied when a user launches it for the first time. For example, you can set the language, theme, or preferences of an application using Application Profiler2.
• It analyzes registry and file system location settings for an application. This means that it monitors the changes that an application makes to the registry and file system when it is running, and generates a Flex configuration file that captures those changes. This allows VMware Dynamic Environment Manager to manage the user personalization of those settings across different devices and sessions3.

The other options are not supported by VMware Dynamic Environment Manager Application Profiler:

• It allows individual user personalization of applications. This is not a capability of Application Profiler, but rather of VMware Dynamic Environment Manager itself. Application Profiler only helps to create the Flex configuration files that enable user personalization, but it does not apply them to individual users4.
• It allows third-party user personalization of applications. This is also not a capability of Application Profiler, but rather of VMware Dynamic Environment Manager itself. Application Profiler only works with applications that store their settings in the registry or file system, and does not support third-party user personalization solutions such as AppSense or RES.
• It allows creation of computer templates. This is not a capability of Application Profiler at all. Computer templates are used to create virtual machines or physical computers with a predefined configuration, and are not related to application management or user personalization.

References:

• Introduction to VMware Dynamic Environment Manager Application Profiler
• Editing a Profile Archive
• Profile an Application
• Introduction to VMware Dynamic Environment Manager
• [VMware Dynamic Environment Manager FAQ]
• [Create a Computer Template]

A black screen when connecting to a Horizon virtual desktop can be caused by various reasons, such as network issues, hardware issues, Horizon tunnel issues, or underlying guest operating system issues. Based on the options given, the following could be the cause of the issue:

• A vRAM shortage on the Horizon virtual machine. This can affect the display performance and cause a black screen or a disconnect. To resolve this issue, you should configure the pool to provide enough video memory for the resolutions you plan to present to the clients1.
• The incorrect video driver version installed on the Horizon virtual machine. This can cause compatibility issues and prevent the display protocol from working properly. To resolve this issue, you should verify that the View desktop is using the correct video driver and that it is compatible with the VMware Tools and Horizon Agent versions installed23.
• An incorrect firewall configuration. This can block or misroute the display protocol traffic and cause a connection failure. To resolve this issue, you should verify that the required ports are open between the client, UAG/Security server/Connection server, and VDI machine4 .

The other options are not likely to cause a black screen when connecting to a Horizon virtual desktop:

• The client machine video memory is too high. This should not affect the display protocol performance or cause a black screen. The client machine video memory is only used to render the display on the local device, not on the remote desktop.
• The Horizon virtual machine video memory is too high. This should not cause a black screen or a disconnect either. The Horizon virtual machine video memory is used to allocate resources for the display protocol on the server side, not on the client side.

References:

• Dual monitors configured using PCoIP does not span both the monitors for VMware View and Connecting to a VDI desktop with PCoIP displays a black screen and disconnects after 10 seconds
• Error attaching to SVGADevTap, error 4000: EscapeFailed reported by PCoIP server
• Interoperability Matrices
• Configuring PCoIP Secure Gateway in VMware View
• [Network Ports in VMware Horizon]

A Trusted Platform Module (vTPM) is a virtualized version of a physical TPM device that provides enhanced security for virtual machines. A vTPM device can be added to a virtual machine to enable features such as encryption, attestation, and key management. A vTPM device requires a Key Management Server (KMS) to store and manage the encryption keys.

To create instant clones VMs with a vTPM device, the vCenter Server user must have certain privileges in addition to those required for instant clones without a vTPM device. One of these privileges is Manage KMS, which allows the user to perform cryptographic operations on the vTPM device, such as cloning, decrypting, encrypting, migrating, and registering. The Manage KMS privilege is part of the Cryptographic operations privilege group on vCenter Server.

The other options are not required only for instant clones VMs with a vTPM device:

• Upgrade virtual machine compatibility: This privilege allows the user to upgrade the virtual hardware version of a virtual machine to support new features and capabilities. This privilege is required for instant clones VMs regardless of whether they have a vTPM device or not.
• Configure Host USB device: This privilege allows the user to configure USB devices on an ESXi host and attach them to a virtual machine. This privilege is not related to vTPM devices or instant clones VMs.
• Manage custom attributes: This privilege allows the user to create, edit, and delete custom attributes for vCenter Server objects. Custom attributes are user-defined fields that can store additional information about objects. This privilege is not related to vTPM devices or instant clones VMs.

References: Privileges Required for the vCenter Server User With Instant Clones, vSphere Virtual Machine Administration, and [VMware Horizon 8.x Professional Course]

RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service) supports two-factor authentication and can be integrated with VMware Horizon to secure administrative access to the Horizon Console. RADIUS servers authenticate users based on a combination of something they know (a password) and something they have (a token or mobile app-generated code), providing an added layer of security for administrative logins.

A screenshot of a computer program Description automatically generated

VMware Horizon is designed to deliver a virtual desktop and application infrastructure, providing IT with a modern, streamlined approach to deliver, protect, and manage Windows and Linux virtual desktops and applications while containing costs and ensuring that end users can work anytime, anywhere, on any device. Horizon 8 supports flexible hybrid and multi-cloud deployment options and offers an optimized experience with unified communication and collaboration tools. The VMware Blast Extreme Protocol, included with Horizon 8, is a dynamic display protocol that delivers an immersive, feature-rich user experience across devices, locations, media, and network connections​​.

VMware Workspace ONE UEM (Unified Endpoint Management) is crucial for ensuring that end-user devices comply with an organization's IT policies. It manages and secures endpoints like smartphones, tablets, laptops, and desktops, streamlining operational tasks for IT while ensuring corporate data security.

VMware Workspace ONE Access facilitates secure and simplified access to enterprise applications, providing single sign-on capabilities and conditional access based on user authentication. This ensures that users can access the resources they need efficiently while maintaining the security of the organization's data and applications.

References:

• For more information on VMware Horizon 8 and its capabilities, you can refer to VMware's official documentation and resources available at techzone.vmware.com, which provides a comprehensive overview of Horizon 8, including its architecture, components, and deployment scenarios​​​​​​.
• Detailed insights into VMware Workspace ONE UEM and Workspace ONE Access can be found within VMware's product documentation and techzone resources, which offer guidance on implementing and managing these solutions as part of the Anywhere Workspace ecosystem​​.

The reason for the issue is that the administrator may not have added an instant clone domain administrator to VMware Horizon. This is a requirement for creating an automated farm of instant-clone virtual machines using the Add Farm wizard.

An instant clone domain administrator is a user account in Microsoft Active Directory that allows Connection Server to perform certain operations related to instant clones in Active Directory, such as joining instant-clone virtual machines to the domain, creating computer accounts, and deleting computer accounts. The administrator must create and configure this account in Active Directory and then specify the user name and password in VMware Horizon.

To add an instant clone domain administrator to VMware Horizon, the administrator needs to follow these steps:

• In the Horizon Console, select Settings > Domains > Domain Accounts.
• Click Add.
• Enter the domain, user name, and password for the instant clone domain administrator.

After adding the instant clone domain administrator to VMware Horizon, the administrator can proceed with creating an automated farm of instant-clone virtual machines using the Add Farm wizard.

The other options are not the reason for the issue:

• In the Add Farm wizard, the administrator may not have selected Automated Farm as farm type: This option is not relevant to the issue, as the farm type selection is done in a later page of the Add Farm wizard, after selecting the domain and the AD container. The page displayed in the exhibit is the Identification and Settings page, which is the first page of the Add Farm wizard.
• The administrator did not prepare a RDSH golden image snapshot: This option is not relevant to the issue, as the RDSH golden image snapshot selection is done in a later page of the Add Farm wizard, after selecting the domain and the AD container. The page displayed in the exhibit is the Identification and Settings page, which does not require a RDSH golden image snapshot.
• The administrator did not add the RDSH golden image to the correct domain: This option is not relevant to the issue, as the RDSH golden image domain selection is done in a later page of the Add Farm wizard, after selecting the domain and the AD container. The page displayed in the exhibit is the Identification and Settings page, which does not require a RDSH golden image domain.

References: Configuring an Instant Clone Domain Administrator in Active Directory, Add an Instant-Clone Domain Administrator, and [VMware Horizon 8.x Professional Course]

Cloud Pod Architecture is a feature that allows administrators to link multiple Horizon pods across sites and data centers to form a single logical entity called a pod federation. Cloud Pod Architecture enables global entitlements, which allow users to access desktops and applications from any pod in the pod federation. Cloud Pod Architecture also provides load balancing, high availability, and disaster recovery capabilities for Horizon deployments.

However, Cloud Pod Architecture has some feature limitations that administrators should be aware of. Two of these limitations are:

• Cloud Pod Architecture does not support Active Directory two-way trusts between domains: This means that the domains that contain the Horizon pods in the pod federation must have a one-way trust relationship, where the domain that contains the Cloud Pod Architecture home site trusts all the other domains, but not vice versa. A two-way trust relationship, where each domain trusts and is trusted by all the other domains, is not supported by Cloud Pod Architecture and can cause authentication and entitlement issues.
• Kiosk mode clients are not supported unless a workaround has been implemented: This means that users who log in to Horizon Client in kiosk mode, which is a mode that allows users to access a single desktop or application without entering credentials, cannot access desktops or applications from a Cloud Pod Architecture implementation. Kiosk mode clients are not compatible with global entitlements and load balancing features of Cloud Pod Architecture. However, there is a workaround that involves creating a dedicated user account and a dedicated desktop pool for each kiosk mode client and using a script to launch Horizon Client with the appropriate parameters. For instructions, see VMware Knowledge Base (KB) article 21488881.

The other options are not limitations of Cloud Pod Architecture:

• Cloud Pod Architecture is supported with Unified Access Gateway appliances: Unified Access Gateway is a platform that provides secure edge services for Horizon deployments, such as secure remote access, load balancing, and authentication. Unified Access Gateway is compatible with Cloud Pod Architecture and can be configured to route user requests to the appropriate pod in the pod federation based on global entitlements and load balancing policies.
• Cloud Pod Architecture can span multiple sites and data centers simultaneously: This is one of the main benefits of Cloud Pod Architecture, as it allows administrators to scale up and out their Horizon deployments across different geographic locations and network boundaries. Cloud Pod Architecture can support up to 15 pods per pod federation and up to 5 sites per pod federation, with a maximum of 200,000 sessions per pod federation.
• The Cloud Pod Architecture feature is supported in an IPv6 environment: IPv6 is the latest version of the Internet Protocol that provides a larger address space and enhanced security features for network communication. Cloud Pod Architecture supports IPv6 environments and can operate in mixed IPv4 and IPv6 environments as well.

References: Cloud Pod Architecture Limitations in Horizon 8 and [VMware Horizon 8.x Professional Course]

Configuring BLAST Bandwidth Profiles involves setting quality, maximum session bandwidth, and frame rate controls. This can be effectively managed using Horizon Smart Policies within VMware's Dynamic Environment Manager (DEM), which allows administrators to create contextual policies that dynamically adapt to the end-user's environment. Alternatively, Group Policy Objects (GPOs) can be used to manually set these configurations across the desktop environment, providing a more static approach to enforcing these settings.

To populate logon segment information in the Horizon Helpdesk Tool, the Horizon administrator must enable the timing profiler on all Connection Servers. This is done by executing the command vdmadmin -I -timingProfiler -enable. The timing profiler collects detailed timing data about the logon process, which is then displayed in the Horizon Helpdesk Tool, allowing administrators to troubleshoot and improve logon times.

On a VMware vCenter managed virtual machine, the VMware Horizon Agent knows which Connection Server it should register with during the Instant Clone pool creation process by querying VMware Tools for a Guestlnfo Variable during the cloning process. The Guestlnfo Variable is a custom property that is set on the parent virtual machine and contains the FQDN of the Connection Server. When the parent virtual machine is cloned, the Guestlnfo Variable is copied to the clone and read by the Horizon Agent. The Horizon Agent then registers with the Connection Server specified in the Guestlnfo Variable12.

The other options are not correct for this scenario:

• Administrator provides this information in the “Add Pool” creation wizard. This option is not correct because the administrator does not need to provide the Connection Server information in the “Add Pool” creation wizard. The administrator only needs to select the vCenter Server, data center, cluster, resource pool, datastore, network, and snapshot of the parent virtual machine. The Connection Server information is already embedded in the parent virtual machine as a Guestlnfo Variable3.
• Horizon Agent retrieves this information from an DNS SRV record. This option is not correct because the Horizon Agent does not use DNS SRV records to find the Connection Server during the Instant Clone pool creation process. DNS SRV records are used by Horizon Client devices to discover Connection Servers when they connect to a Horizon environment. DNS SRV records are optional and can be configured by the administrator to simplify client connections4.
• Administrator provides this information in the Horizon Agent Installation Wizard on the master image. This option is not correct because the administrator does not need to provide the Connection Server information in the Horizon Agent Installation Wizard on the master image. The administrator only needs to select the features and options that are required for the desktop pool, such as VMware Horizon Instant Clone Agent, VMware Dynamic Environment Manager, VMware App Volumes, and so on. The Connection Server information is set on the master image after it is converted to a parent virtual machine by using a PowerShell script5.

References:

• Instant Clones: How Does It Work?
• Instant Clone Domain Administrator Account
• Create an Automated Instant-Clone Desktop Pool
• Configuring DNS Service Records for Horizon Connection Server
• Install Horizon Agent on a Virtual Machine
• [VMware Horizon 8.x Professional]
• [VMware Horizon Architecture Planning]

The user’s problem is that their settings for the e-mail client are not being saved across sessions. This means that their user profile, which contains their personal data, settings, and preferences, is not being preserved or synchronized properly. To solve this problem, the administrator can deploy one or more of the following options to manage user profiles in Horizon:

• VMware App Volumes Writable Volumes: This option allows users to store user-installed applications, data, and settings on a disk independent of the VM. Writable volumes can be attached to desktops along with application packages, and they can isolate the user-installed applications from the system-installed applications. Writable volumes can also be configured to capture specific files and registry keys by using the snapvol.cfg policy file. This option can help users retain their e-mail client settings on a writable volume that is attached to their desktop at each login.
• Persona Management: This option allows administrators to manage user profiles by using a remote repository that stores user profiles. Persona Management synchronizes the user profile between the remote repository and the local desktop at login, logout, and at regular intervals during the session. Persona Management also supports profile redirection, which allows administrators to redirect certain folders in the user profile to a network share or a writable volume. This option can help users access their e-mail client settings from the remote repository or the redirected folder at each login.
• VMware Dynamic Environment Manager: This option allows administrators to manage user profiles and policies by using a central share that stores user configuration files. Dynamic Environment Manager captures and applies user settings and preferences based on conditions and triggers, such as location, device, or application launch. Dynamic Environment Manager also supports profile archives, which allow administrators to back up and restore user profiles on demand or on schedule. This option can help users apply their e-mail client settings from the central share or the profile archive at each login.

The other options are not valid options for managing user profiles in Horizon:

• Roaming Profiles: This option is a native Windows feature that allows users to access their user profile from any computer in a domain by storing it on a network share. However, this option is not recommended for Horizon because it can cause long login times, profile corruption, and data loss due to its synchronous and overwrite behavior. Roaming profiles are also incompatible with instant clones and linked clones.
• Flexible profiles: This option does not exist in Horizon or Windows. It might be confused with Flex Profiles, which is a third-party product from Liquidware that provides profile management solutions similar to Dynamic Environment Manager.

References: Writable Volumes Overview, Configuring User Profiles with Horizon Persona Management, VMware Dynamic Environment Manager Overview, and [VMware Horizon 8.x Professional Course]

For instant-clone operations in Active Directory, the user account used by VMware Horizon needs specific permissions to manage computer objects effectively. These include the ability to create and delete child objects and computer objects, as well as read and write all properties of those objects. These permissions ensure that Horizon can create, modify, and clean up computer accounts associated with instant clones, facilitating seamless desktop provisioning and management.

In VMware Horizon, to designate a Home Site for a user, you would use the "Cloud Pod Architecture" feature, which allows you to set home sites and manage global entitlements across multiple pods and sites in a Horizon environment.

In the exhibit's menu on the left, you should click on "Cloud Pod Architecture" to proceed with designating a Home Site for a user.

Load balancing is a feature that allows administrators to distribute the load of published desktop and application sessions across multiple RDS hosts in a farm. Load balancing can improve the performance and availability of the sessions and the hosts. Horizon offers two ways of configuring load balancing for RDS hosts: using load balancing settings in Horizon Console or using custom load balancing scripts.

The load balancing settings in Horizon Console allow administrators to define how Horizon calculates the server load index, which indicates the load on each RDS host. The server load index can range from 0 to 100, where 0 represents no load and 100 represents full load. A server load index of -1 indicates that load balancing is disabled. Horizon uses the server load index to determine which RDS host is the best candidate for placing a new session request.

The load balancing settings in Horizon Console include the following check boxes that can be selected to influence the load balancing behavior:

• The use custom script setting for customized RDSH load balancing: This setting allows administrators to override the default behavior of the load balancing settings and control the placement of new sessions by writing and configuring custom load balancing scripts. The custom scripts must write the server load index to a specific registry key on each RDS host. Horizon will use the value from the registry key instead of calculating it from the other settings.
• The Include Session Count setting to include the session count on the RDSH for load balancing: This setting allows administrators to include the number of sessions (connected, pending, and disconnected) on each RDS host as a factor in calculating the server load index. By default, Horizon uses the following formula to calculate the server load index based on the session count: (connected sessions + pending sessions + disconnected sessions)/ (maximum session count). If the maximum session count is configured as unlimited, Horizon falls back to using the absolute number of total sessions.

The other options are not check boxes that can be selected in the load balancing settings in Horizon Console:

• The floating dynamic host profile setting, created in the vSphere profile section: This option is not related to load balancing for RDS hosts, but rather to dynamic environment manager for instant-clone desktops. A dynamic host profile is a vSphere profile that contains configuration settings for instant-clone desktops, such as network settings, domain join settings, and customization scripts. A floating dynamic host profile is a type of dynamic host profile that applies to floating desktop pools, where users are assigned a random desktop from a pool at each login.
• The Horizon DRS setting for fully automated vSphere load balancing: This option is not related to load balancing for RDS hosts, but rather to distributed resource scheduler (DRS) for vSphere clusters. DRS is a feature that monitors and balances the CPU and memory resources across multiple ESXi hosts in a cluster. DRS can also migrate virtual machines between hosts using vMotion to optimize resource utilization and performance. Horizon DRS is an extension of DRS that integrates with Horizon and provides additional capabilities, such as affinity rules, maintenance mode, and power management. Horizon DRS can be configured with different automation levels, such as fully automated, partially automated, or manual.

References: Configuring Load Balancing for RDS Hosts in Horizon Console, Load Balancing Settings, Load Balancing Scripts, [Dynamic Host Profiles], and [VMware Horizon 8.x Professional Course]

To improve the user experience when using Application Profiler from Dynamic Environment Manager to create application-specific user defined settings, the administrator can configure exclusions to filter out unnecessary folders and registry entries. Exclusions are rules that specify which file system or registry locations are not included in the Flex configuration file. Exclusions can reduce the size of the Flex configuration file and the profile archive, and improve the performance of the application profiling and synchronization processes12.

The other options are not valid or effective because:

• Changing the default save path does not affect the size or content of the Flex configuration file or the profile archive. It only changes where the files are stored on the local machine3.
• Using Deepest Registry Path does not reduce the size of the Flex configuration file or the profile archive. It only changes how the registry locations are displayed in the Application Profiler interface4.
• There is no such thing as Cloud Entitlements in Dynamic Environment Manager. The correct term is Global Entitlements, which are used in Cloud Pod Architecture to entitle users to desktops or applications across multiple pods5.

References := 1: VMware Dynamic Environment Manager Application Profiler Administration Guide: Filtering and Optimizing the Analysis Details 2: VMware Dynamic Environment Manager Application Profiler Administration Guide: Exclusions 3: VMware Dynamic Environment Manager Application Profiler Administration Guide: Advanced Configuration of Application Profiler 4: VMware Dynamic Environment Manager Application Profiler Administration Guide: Editing the Flex Configuration File 5: VMware Horizon 8 Documentation: Understanding Global Entitlements in Cloud Pod Architecture

Thin Clients and Zero Clients have the lowest cost of ownership and are easier to manage due to their minimalistic design, which lacks a full operating system, resulting in fewer components that require updates. These clients are designed for remote desktop services like VMware Horizon, where the computing work is done on the server side, making firmware updates and monitoring simpler and more centralized.

In VMware Horizon, the Pre-Launch feature allows for the initiation of applications immediately after user authentication, reducing the launch time of frequently used applications. By editing the application pool settings and enabling the Pre-Launch option, administrators can improve user experience by having critical applications ready as soon as the authentication process is completed.

Horizon Connection Server instances keep their data in an AD LDS database, which is automatically synchronized between the Connection Server. AD LDS is a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) directory service that provides flexible support for directory-enabled applications, without the dependencies that are required for Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS). AD LDS provides much of the same functionality as AD DS, but it does not require the deployment of domains or domain controllers. In a Horizon environment, each Connection Server instance has a copy of the AD LDS database and replicates changes to other Connection Server instances in the same pod. This ensures that the Connection Server instances have consistent and up-to-date information about the Horizon resources and user sessions12 References:

• Configuring Horizon Connection Server1
• Understanding VMware Horizon Services2